Alan Bowkett webchat question

[norfolkchance1 0]

I''ve just been reading the questions and answers from the webchat, I just wondered what his public challenge was to Neil Doncasters running of the club.

http://www.pinkun.com/content/pinkun/norwich-city/story.aspx?brand=PINKUNOnline&category=Norwich&tBrand=PINKUNOnline&tCategory=xDefault&itemid=NOED27%20Oct%202009%2011%3A13%3A43%3A207

It was from a question by CUSDP and his answer was:

"Can u sit down please - I must correct you, I publicly challenged how Neil Doncaster was running the Club. As for Delia and the two Michaels, I think their outstanding contribution has been the appointment of David McNally as Chief Executive - a consummate businessman who has a decade of football experience at the highest level. Paul, David and I are now running the Football Club with the complete support of the substantial shareholders. When we have had to take very difficult decisions, all our substantial shareholders have been demanding in their questioning of our proposals, as I would wish any non-executive director to be and then they have been some of the most supportive non-executive directors I have ever worked with and I can assure you I have worked with a lot. Let''s not forget, I did not seek this job and it was Delia and Michael that realised some fundamental changes had to occur and they spent considerable time persuading me to undertake the task."

Copied directly from webpage.

[blahblahblah 2]

I think that he and another "associate director" (someone who has put in £25,000 for shares) wrote a letter to the club expressing their concerns about how things were being run. 

[Pete Raven 276]

Open letter to Roger Munby, chairman of Norwich City Football Club, from Nigel Bertram and Alan Bowkett, chairman and deputy chairman of the NCFC Associate Directors Group

Dear Roger,

As you know we are respectively the chairman and deputy chairman of NCFC''s Associate Directors Group which is a team of local businessmen and supporters who collectively own approximately 5pc of the equity in NCFC plus substantial sums in the preference shares. Please note the views in this letter are our own.

Over the past five years we have met with you and Neil Doncaster on a number of occasions to see how the skills of our group can be utilised for the greater good of the NCFC family.

Sadly, our advice has been dismissed the majority of the time.

Perhaps our only success has been the introduction and financing of the Employee of the Year Awards for non-footballing colleagues at the club, an event you have now decided to abandon.

You are aware that we have been dissatisfied with the executive management of the club for a number of years, culminating in our preparation of a financial analysis of the situation and strategic options open to us in December 2007.

To the board''s continuing shame you categorically refused to meet your own shareholders to discuss the proposals; proposals that were developed with the sole aim of improving the situation.

We now know that you believed we were in concert with Peter Cullum as you were then in negotiations with him in complete secrecy.

Ironically, no member of our group knows this man and it was only through logic and financial analysis that we concluded that some £25m needed to be invested, a similar sum to that calculated by Mr Cullum''s advisors.

We are acutely conscious that all the directors love the club and have taken decisions that they felt were the correct ones at the time.

However, good intent is not the only skill required to manage an enterprise: skill, leadership, vision and empathy with all stakeholders are essential.

The board does not have these attributes.

The mistakes during your stewardship are legion and well documented in correspondence and internet postings throughout the county and beyond.

Suffice to say we are now in the third tier of English football, our financial situation is dire, we

do not have a team, the loyal supporters are distressed but we do have the best ground in the third division.

Under your chairmanship and Neil Doncaster''s executive leadership the quality of our product has deteriorated every year since 2004, losses have continued to mount and debt piled up.

The only honourable course open to you both is to resign forthwith without compensation, the board to search for a new chief executive, appoint a new chairman from the local business community and work with the current majority shareholders to get us out of this mess.

For the avoidance of doubt, neither of us seeks to join the board.

Unfortunately, we do not expect you to listen to our arguments alone and therefore we will be consulting with various stakeholder groups to ensure that we create a sufficient groundswell of public opinion that will be resolute, indefatigable and irresistible.

We must end this uncertainty now

[blahblahblah 2]

beat me by a minute Pete [:)]

[norfolkchance1 0]

Cheers Pete, when was this made public I don''t remember hearing much about this before.

[Pete Raven 276]

Good question. 5 May, 2009 if memory serves.

[blahblahblah 2]

There was a thread in here, if you do a search on "bowkett" and go to the last of 5 pages you''ll find it.

[blahblahblah 2]

http://www.pinkun.com/cs_pinkun/cs/forums/1671831/ShowPost.aspx

[CanaryPurple 0]

That was a highly critical open letter co-signed by Bowkett and Nigel

Bertram, in their roles as associate directors, before Bowkett joined

the board.

The webchat reply is an interesting one, because it is certainly

possible to read part of it as veiled criticism of Smith and Jones. "As for

Delia and the two Michaels, I think their outstanding contribution has

been the appointment of David McNally as Chief Executive."

As someone who has taken a slight interest in Cullumgate and the

question of ownership, it was nice to have Bowkett categorically

confirm that the club is effectively up for sale, with Harris having

majority investment as part of his remit, and with Smith and Jones

being willing to sell.

"If we are to make a sustained bid for a position in the

Premiership we clearly will need an injection of new funds. This may

mean new ownership - something I know the current owners are fully

aligned to."

[norfolkchance1 0]

Cheers just done so, explains a lot.

[nobbyg 0]

It was this letter that Delia acted on and fired both Doncaster and Munby.  Bowkett did not seek to join the board, but Delia asked him anyway and he said yes!

I should have asked Mr Bowkett how many games he and Steffan Phillips have attended this season so far. 

Or why the announcement that Roger Munby has been made a Life President has not yet been made. 

 

[Joanna Grey 0]

[quote user="CanaryPurple"]That was a highly critical open letter co-signed by Bowkett and Nigel Bertram, in their roles as associate directors, before Bowkett joined the board.

The webchat reply is an interesting one, because it is certainly possible to read part of it as veiled criticism of Smith and Jones. "

As for Delia and the two Michaels, I think their outstanding contribution has been the appointment of David McNally as Chief Executive."

As someone who has taken a slight interest in Cullumgate and the question of ownership, it was nice to have Bowkett categorically confirm that the club is effectively up for sale, with Harris having majority investment as part of his remit, and with Smith and Jones being willing to sell.

"If we are to make a sustained bid for a position in the Premiership we clearly will need an injection of new funds. This may mean new ownership - something I know the current owners are fully aligned to."
[/quote]

Which proves, of course, that some of us were correct in our assertions all along.

[Camuldonum 0]

[quote user="nobbyg"]

It was this letter that Delia acted on and fired both Doncaster and Munby.  Bowkett did not seek to join the board, but Delia asked him anyway and he said yes!

I should have asked Mr Bowkett how many games he and Steffan Phillips have attended this season so far. 

Or why the announcement that Roger Munby has been made a Life President has not yet been made. 

 

[/quote]

I cannot say about Mr M but Doncaster went with a 12 month pay off having previously been tapped up for the Scottish job.

Win, win I would have thought for Doomcaster.

[The Fish Seller 0]

[quote user="Sports Desk - Pete"]

However, good intent is not the only skill required to manage an enterprise: skill, leadership, vision and empathy with all stakeholders are essential.The board does not have these attributes. The mistakes during your stewardship are legion and well documented in correspondence and internet postings throughout the county and beyond. Suffice to say we are now in the third tier of English football, our financial situation is dire, wedo not have a team, the loyal supporters are distressed but we do have the best ground in the third division.Under your chairmanship and Neil Doncaster''s executive leadership the quality of our product has deteriorated every year since 2004, losses have continued to mount and debt piled up.

[/quote]As do the pieces I''ve cherry picked and highlighted Mustachio, tbh I''m beginning to wonder if TFAA? and Alan Bowkett have ever been seen in the same room together.....

[Rock the Boat 0]

[quote user="Buckethead"][quote user="Sports Desk - Pete"]

However, good intent is not the only skill required to manage an enterprise: skill, leadership, vision and empathy with all stakeholders are essential.

The board does not have these attributes.

The mistakes during your stewardship are legion and well documented in correspondence and internet postings throughout the county and beyond.

Suffice to say we are now in the third tier of English football, our financial situation is dire, we

do not have a team, the loyal supporters are distressed but we do have the best ground in the third division.

Under your chairmanship and Neil Doncaster''s executive leadership the quality of our product has deteriorated every year since 2004, losses have continued to mount and debt piled up.

[/quote]

As do the pieces I''ve cherry picked and highlighted Mustachio, tbh I''m beginning to wonder if TFAA? and Alan Bowkett have ever been seen in the same room together.....
[/quote]

Can''t imagine Alan Bowkett losing his umbrella, though. Doesn''t seem the type.